TWO DECADES AGO, LONG BEFORE A REPLACEMENT PLAYER WAS A WELL-KNOWN SABERMETRIC MEASURING STICK, MAJOR LEAGUE CAMPS WERE OVERRUN WITH A DIFFERENT KIND OF FILL -IN: HORDES OF HAS-BEENS AND WANNABES CHASING DREAMS WHILE REAL BIG LEAGUERS WERE ON STRIKE. IT WAS FUNNY, SHAMEFUL—AND FOR ONE PLAYER, TRAGIC

The mettle of a championship contender is typically measured by net rating, which is margin of victory adjusted for pace. Golden State is outscoring opponents by 12.3 points per 100 possessions, according to NBA.com; the difference between that mark and the second-place Hawks' +7.1 is roughly equivalent to that between Atlanta's and the 14th-place Suns'. In fact, the Warriors have the highest net rating since 1995--96, when the 72-win Bulls ran wild. It appears we have our championship favorite.

51.2%-52.3%-91.1%: KYLE KORVER'S SHOOTING PERCENTAGES

The 50-40-90 club (50% shooting from the field, 40% from three and 90% from the line) is a crowning achievement for an NBA shooter. Among qualified statistical leaders, only six players have gained membership. Korver is on pace to be the seventh, while establishing a new club: the 50-50-90. This is why Korver, long regarded as a role player, is an All-Star: His accuracy is unprecedented, and its effect on opposing defenses profound.

35--47: PROJECTED RECORDS OF THE HORNETS AND THE HEAT

While the cold reality of the West's playoff picture means at least two worthy entrants will be left out, the East features Charlotte and Miami in its seventh and eighth seeds with identical 22--30 records. Pitiful doesn't quite cover it. Not since the 1994--95 Celtics has a team made the postseason with a win percentage as dreadful as .427; this year the East could have two. On a surely unrelated note, commissioner Adam Silver recently noted that the NBA will look into changing the playoff structure.

Before he became the premier postseason performer of his generation, the Patriots icon was a middling college quarterback who invited skepticism, even scorn, from fans and his coaches. That was all—and that was everything